Computer Vision Syndrome

I got a new pair of glasses last December after months of squinting through computer monitors whenever filing my reports.

I chose to go back to my old doctor to monitor if there was any change in my eyesight - I had last had my eye checked at this clinic when I was in high school.

Not surprisingly, my condition had gotten worse with more exposure to computer screens.

I still had astigmatic vision, no biggie. I just got re-acquainted with the condition. Apparently, things both too close and far are blurry around the edges, my eyes not refracting enough light to form more solid images.

It was in that visit, however, that I was introduced to CVS or Computer Vision Syndrome: that burning sensation in the eyes known to frequent desktop/laptop users everywhere.

My doctor told me to monitor if there was pain in my eyeballs and get some rest when they do. (aside from prescribing eye drops to increase the moisture of my eyes.)

I left the clinic with a new pair of glasses and a newfound respect for a vision that I had abused my eyes all these years especially through the sleepless days of high school and the parties of college.

Of course there's the academic work.

During the jeepney ride home, I just stared outside the vehicle's window and watched the street scenes play.

I was missing this all the while: the depths in the various distances of things.

Davao Writers Guild-Ateneo de Davao Writers' Workshop now open for applications

DAVAO CITY (Davao Writers Guild/07 January) -- The Davao Writers Guild and the Humanities Division of the Ateneo de Davao University, in cooperation with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, will hold a Writers Workshop on May 4-8, 2009 in Davao City.

Any resident of Mindanao is qualified to apply to the DWG-ADDU Writers Workshop 2009. Applicants are required to submit five poems, or one short story, or essay, or one-act play; or any combination. The works may be in Filipino, English, or Cebuano.

Please submit the application form and three copies of the manuscripts to Prof. Jhoanna Cruz, Department of Humanities, University of the Philippines Mindanao, Mintal, Davao City. Do not write your name on the manuscripts. Then please send the files as attachment to davaowritersguild@yahoo.com.phThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with the subject “DWG-ADDU Writers Workshop 2009 Application.”

Application forms may be downloaded from dagmay.kom.ph.

Fifteen writing fellows will be selected and provided free board and lodging for the duration of the workshop. Five slots are allotted to fellows from outside Davao, if any, who will receive a transportation allowance.

This year’s panelists are: Macario D. Tiu, Ricardo de Ungria, Don Pagusara, Timothy Montes, and Marjorie Evasco.

The deadline for application is March 15, 2009. Successful applicants will be posted on the website on April 15. (Davao Writers Guild)